Tech · Sony · 2023
Sony WF-1000XM5
The reference pick on Android when you want noise cancelling and sound quality in one shot.
Overall
8.1
out of 10
Axis scores
Tech is scored on these 5 axes. The total is their plain average — nothing is weighted.
Average of 5 axes
8.1/10
- Performance
- 9.0
- Value
- 7.2
- Durability
- 7.8
- Ease of use
- 8.5
- Design
- 8.0
- Performance — How well it does the core job
- Value — What the same money buys elsewhere
- Durability — Failure and fade reports past the one-year mark
- Ease of use — Setup, daily operation, cleaning, maintenance
- Design — Build quality and how it sits in a room
Specs
- Codecs
- SBC, AAC, LDAC
- Battery
- About 8 hrs with ANC on
- Weight
- 5.9 g per bud
- Water resistance
- IPX4
As published by the manufacturer. We didn't measure these ourselves.
Is it for you
Buy it if
- An Android phone where the high-bitrate codec actually opens up
- You like getting into an EQ and setting it yourself
- A long transit commute where isolation earns its keep
Skip it if
- You only use an iPhone, which strands the LDAC advantage
- Small ears where the tips struggle to seal
On isolation alone this sits close enough to its rivals that picking a winner is splitting hairs. Where it pulls ahead is control: the app lets you shape the EQ and the ambient blend far more finely than the competition allows.
LDAC only means something on Android. On an iPhone one of the two reasons to buy this disappears, and the shortlist should widen back out.
Last updated . The scoring method is on how we rank.